Tacchi One Half
by Foxx Laverinth
Summary: AU. You all know the story. Boy falls into spring... boy turns into girl... Different boy this time, though. The Kuno family will never be the same.
1. Of Samurais and Sacred Springs

Tacchi 1/2 - A Rose of My Heart

A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction

Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 and all the characters associated with it belong to Rumiko Takahashi and Viz. I'd ask them to share, but I'm pretty sure they'd turn me down.

Author's Notes: Tacchi 1/2 is an alterverse, meaning an alternate universe of the original Ranma storyline. If you are not familiar with the original story this will make little sense to you, and is not a good example to base your knowledge of the series off of. On another note, I base most of my fic off the graphic novel (manga) version of Ranma 1/2. For those of you who only know the anime, you should be just fine. There's very little difference in the stories. As a homage to the anime, though, I WILL be including Sasuke (an anime-only character) and refer to the Saotome and Tendo style martial arts as "Anything Goes" as opposed to "Indiscriminate Grappling".

As you have probably guessed from the title, this particular Ranma fanfic does NOT center on Ranma. I thought I'd try my hand at writing a decent fic with someone a bit less used as the Jusenkyo cursed protagonist...

----------------------------

**Chapter One: Of Samurais and Sacred Springs**

Tendo School of Anything Goes Martial Arts  
  
In a familiar setting, a familiar family is sitting around their dining room table, discussing events that are about to unfold and change their lives forever. It seems that their father has engaged them, or one of them at least, to be married to a boy they have never even met. The family is, of course, the Tendos: Akane, Nabiki, Kasumi and their father Soun. None of the three daughters seem overly excited by this, of course, and who could blame them?

Soon the inevitable moment came, as the family heard a loud cry of "LEGGO Y'OL FOOL!" coming from the front lawn.

The middle Tendo sister and her father ran out to the gate to find a man about her father's age carrying a kicking and screaming boy over his shoulder. The man was heavyset, with glasses and a bandanna covering the baldness of his head.

"Genma! After all these years you've come to visit me at last!"

"It's been a long time, Tendo." The man smiled. Then he set down the figure he'd been carrying up until now. "I'd like you to meet my son, Ranma."

Soun immediately enveloped the boy in a huge bear hug, practically squeezing the life out of him in the process. "At last! You've come!" Ranma's response was muffled by Soun's robe.

Nabiki grabbed her father and dragged him away from the unfortunate guest. "Daddy!" she whispered, "Is that him? Is that the boy you were going to set one of us up with?"

"Why, yes, that would be Ran-"

"Oh, thank you, Daddy!" She whispered, giving her father a peck on the cheek. Then she made her way quickly over to the boy's side, eyeing him up and down.

"Uh, hello." he watched her suspiciously.

"So! You're a martial artist, eh?" she asked, flashing a small smile.

- --

When they returned, the Tendos and their new guests gathered together in the living area. Soun lined his daughters up along one side of the table. Akane felt like some sort of farm animal being auctioned off to the highest bidder. Kasumi was disappointed that Ranma was younger than she was. Nabiki just smiled at him, leaning over with her arms crossed on the table.

"My daughter Kasumi. Nineteen. And Nabiki. Seventeen. And Akane. Sixteen. Choose the one you want. She'll be your fiancé."

Ranma scowled at his father before turning back unwillingly to the three girls in front of him. He was about to think over his decision, when he found it had already been made for him.

"Daddy!" Nabiki cooed, "I believe it would be best if I were to become the bride of this poor boy, seeing as I'm the only one in this family with ANY money sense at all, and you DO wish for your children's financial future to be secure, don't you?"

Before Ranma could give an answer, Soun was on his knees beside his daughter. "Nabiki, that's so wonderful! You would do that? Oh, you make your father so proud!"

"You're so lucky, boy," Ranma's father cried, wrapping an arm around his son's shoulder.

"Hey-!" he tried to complain, but he found Nabiki giving him a friendly grin.

"I realize it might be a bit difficult for me, but I shall do my best to cope with the situation- for the sake of the family..." she said, adding a fake sob for emphasis.

"Oh, you're so good to my boy!" Genma replied, tears welling up in his eyes.

Akane frowned. (Honestly!) she thought, (the way she plays those two like a harp...it's pathetic!)

Ranma merely sighed and turned away, trying to sort things out. This just hadn't been his day.

Several Months Ago: Mainland China

The three weary travelers looked out over the strange land before them with mixed feelings. The area around them was dotted all over by hundreds of small springs, with tall bamboo poles sprouting out of them like straws. So this was the training ground they had been seeking for several long weeks.

Upperclassmen Tatewaki Kuno shifted the weight of the pack on his shoulders before turning to the older woman next to him.

"This place is not so impressive as you made it seem, Mother. Are you sure it was worth all the trouble getting here?"

"You very strange one, no sir?" their guide replied before his mother could respond, "Is very dangerous. Nobody use now."

"OHOHOHOHOHOHO!" The earsplitting laugh had the guide immediately covering his ears and wincing in pain. "Dangerous, eh?" Kodachi Kuno laughed again, causing even her brother to glance at her in disgust. "Maybe this little venture will prove entertaining after all. Exactly what is the danger, kind sir?"

The guide continued in a somewhat shaken voice, "Is more than one hundred spring here. Each one have own tragic legend..."

"We've not the time for this peasant's ranting, dear sister. Our training awaits us!" With another one of her gut-wrenching laughs, Kodachi and her brother leapt out onto the bamboo poles. Kuno swung his bokken, using it as a balance, while his sister whipped around a gymnastics ribbon dangerously, seemingly having no trouble keeping her stability on such flimsy footing.

"Wait! Good customers! What you doing!"

They ignored him as their mother leapt out onto the poles along with them. "Keep nothing back, my children, lest all my training be without reward!"

"Do not fret yourself mother," Kodachi replied as her ribbon laced out, wrapping itself around her parent's leg and sending her sprawling with a screech into the spring below. "It could be your downfall."

"Ah! Customers! Very bad! Very bad if you fall in!" the guide chittered nervously.

"What are you babbling on about now, man?" Kuno turned on him with a disdainful look.

The guide was about to reply, when suddenly a giant panda flung itself out of the spring and landed back on the bamboo pole. It glared angrily at the Kuno girl and took on a fighting stance.

"W-what i-in the..." Kodachi stuttered.

"What on earth is that!" her brother finished for her.

The guide sighed. "Why is it no one ever listen to me about warning? I tell you springs very cursed! What Miss Customer fall into is Spring of Drowned Panda. There is tragic legend, sir, very tragic, of panda what fall in there two thousand year ago. Now whoever fall in spring take body of panda!"

"AND WHY WAS I NEVER TOLD OF THIS!" Kodachi yelled at the guide. She wasn't able to hear the guide's rebuke, however, as she was suddenly knocked off her perch by a flailing black paw. She fell quite unceremoniously into the spring she'd been standing above.

"AH! You fall into Spring of Drowned Rabbit! Is tragic story, Miss Customer, of poor little rabbit what drown there seven hundred year ago. Now whoever fall into spring take body of rabbit! Ah, poor Miss Customers!"

"What is the meaning of this!" Tatewaki was desperately trying to fend off the attacks of his newly made panda mother. "Why is it you did not warn us of this atrocity beforehand?"

"But, sir, I..."

A small, gray, furry animal suddenly came leaping out of nowhere, bounding from pole to pole quicker than the eye could follow. Then with a mighty 'thump' it threw itself at the last remaining Kuno.

The bokken-wielding boy suddenly found himself quite off balanced, and he began teetering dangerously on the pole, waving his arms frantically in order to keep himself from falling in. Then with a roar, the panda leapt at him, knocking him clear off the bamboo and into the air.

"How dare you, Motheeeeeeeeerrrrr!" Kodachi's brother cried as his body fell with a loud splash into a nearby pool.

The guide gave a gasp of shock. "No!" he cried, "Not Spring of Drowned Girl! Is very tragic legend, very tragic, of girl what drown in spring one thousand, five hundred year ago. Now whoever fall in spring take body of young girl. You see what I mean?"

Tatewaki Kuno brought himself dazedly to his feet in the waist-high water. He looked around for a moment before realizing that something didn't feel quite right. He looked down at himself, suddenly remembering his fall into the spring. He looked at his hands. They seemed somewhat smaller, but he felt human enough. Then he looked further down. His new features showed clearly under his samurai garb.

There was a moment of stunned silence.

Then she screamed.

- --

Somewhere in a nearby village, a young, purple-haired girl looked up from her training at the sound of the horrible cries from just over the mountains.

What is that sound, Great Grandmother? she asked the shriveled up old crone next to her in Chinese.

Sounds like some sort of tortured animal... the tiny woman replied. I wonder what on earth could be making such a racket...?

- --

The once-human panda bear held the guide in a death grip, his face turning a deep shade of purple. She growled at him, wanting to rip him to shreds, (or at least be able to speak so she could yell at him.) Kuno's mother had been, after some difficulty, able to drag her stunned son (daughter?) out of the spring he'd fallen in, bringing both him (her?) and her daughter out of the mess of pools and back to the guide's abode. Her son still sat in the far corner of the room, reacting to nothing even as her mother choked the guide almost to death.

"Please!" the man finally managed to gasp out, "Spring water is not permanent! Listen to me!" Reluctantly, she released her hold. The guide fell to the floor with a thump and began gasping desperately for air. The panda sat down in front of him, crossing her front legs in a very human-like gesture of impatience. Nevertheless, the man waited until he had regained his breath before he continued.

"Curse goes away when customer uses warm or hot water. Cold water calls up curse again. Stay away from cold water and curse is not permanent. Just always carry hot water if you no want to be cursed. Honorable customers are not stuck forever."

Before his mother could even move, Tatewaki ran up to the Chinese man. The small rabbit that had been sitting in her brother's (sister's?) lap up until now fell to the floor in a furry little heap. The newly cursed girl grabbed the guide by the front of his shirt. "Then get me some hot water, swine, and be quick about it!"

The guide pulled away and stood up, then walked over to his stove and began warming up a kettle of hot water for them. The room was silent for a while as everyone waited on him, (Tatewaki being the only one who could speak at the time anyway.) His foot tapped the ground repeatedly in his impatience.

The small, gray rabbit had picked herself dazedly up from the floor and now stood next to her brother, watching her tapping foot. (He should consider himself lucky,) she thought to herself, (at least he's still human.)

At last the guide came back, holding the hot water kettle. Kuno grabbed it from him, emptying its contents over his head. He saved some of it for the rabbit at his feet, dumping it over the small creature without warning.

The condition of his sister after her transformation was something he hadn't entirely expected.

He covered his eyes with one hand as he dropped the kettle. He spun around so that he was facing away from her, his face a distinct shade of pink.

Kodachi crawled over to her backpack, which sat on a chair at the table. She quickly fumbled through it before pulling out several articles of clothing and turning away so that she could change into them. (Of course, the clothes wouldn't be included in the curse, would they? I mean, that would just be too convenient,) she thought.

The guide began heating up another kettle for their mother, who had begun to growl impatiently. Kodachi was shuffling through her pack for something, and Tatewaki was standing with his arms crossed and his eyes closed, seemingly in deep meditation about who-knows-what. He did not speak until his mother was back in her own form again.

"So. We are cursed like this forever, then?"

"Unfortunate, but true, Mr. Customer. Is no cure for this curse."

"You couldn't, say, just jump into a spring of drowned man or something to reverse the effects?"

His sister let out a short chuckle (nothing close to her usual laugh, but she wasn't quite in the mood.) "Why of course not, dearest brother. Can't you see that would be all too easy?" She chuckled again.

Kuno looked at the guide, who sighed. "Miss customer is right. Once you are cursed, there is no changing it. You is welcome to try your luck at man spring, but you find it to be little use."

"How dare you bring us to such a place, mother!" Tatewaki turned as his sister began to yell at their mother. "Had you no idea what you were getting into! How could you do this to your own children!"

"How was I to know! It's not my fault the pamphlet was..."

"Was what?"

She faltered slightly under her son's gaze.

"Was what!" he asked again.

When there was no reply, Kodachi ran over to her mother's pack, pulling the pamphlet out from the side pocket. They all watched her as she scanned over it for a few seconds. Kuno noticed that her face seemed to slowly turn a dark shade of red.

"Th-this..." she finally stuttered, the hands holding the paper starting to shake, "this is in Chinese! You couldn't read a WORD of this, could you mother?"

"I could so!" she cried. "I merely... misinterpreted it."

They both glared at her. If she didn't know any better, she could have sworn their eyes went red as their battle auras flared up.

"The only consolation I can get out of this," Tatewaki replied as he allowed himself to calm down, "is that you have been cursed as well." He picked up his pack and began walking towards the door. "Come. We should leave this place and its vile enchantments."

"Wait, brother dear!" Kodachi pulled several small canisters out of her backpack, smiling evilly. "Our trip here need not be a complete waste..."

- --

Tendo Dojo: the Present

"School?" Ranma stared at his father confusedly.

"Yes, my son," his father nodded solemnly, "It's time you started to settle down here in Nerima, now that you're engaged. It's important that you get a good education so that you can support your family."

"Or so that I don't end up like you."

His father scowled. "Show some respect for your father, boy. You never would have been this well off if it weren't for me."

"I wouldn't have been HERE if it wasn't for you." With that, he stood up and began to exit the room.

He ran straight into Nabiki.

"Oh! Good morning, Ranma. It's your first day of school and all, so I thought I'd walk you to class."

"That's real nice of you, Nabiki. You should thank her, boy."

Ranma waved his father's words off without turning. Then he grabbed his fiancé's arm and began walking towards the door.

"Bye, Mr. Saotome!" Nabiki waved before being dragged along.

- **End of Chapter One**


	2. Starting Anew

Tacchi 1/2 - A Rose of My Heart

A Ranma 1/2 fanfiction

Disclaimer: Still not mine. Alas.

**Chapter Two: Starting Anew**

Nabiki looked up at her new fiance. He seemed to prefer walking along the fence than down with her on the sidewalk. She couldn't figure out how he could keep his balance up there without even glancing down at his feet.

"I wish you'd come down from there," she suddenly called out, "You're giving me the creeps."

Ranma looked down at her in annoyance before letting out a long sigh. Then, with a casual leap into the air, he did a somersault and landed next to her, causing her heart beat rate to nearly double.

"Better?"

"Yes..." she squeaked, before clearing her throat.

"So. Where's that younger sister of yours?"

"Oh, she left a while ago. She has some business to attend to before school and she didn't want to be late."

"Okay."

As they rounded the corner that led to the school grounds they noticed a surprising number of unconcious bodies littering the area near the entrance. Ranma stared around in awe. "What in the world came through here!"

"Something with a very bad temper," Nabiki murmured as she pulled him along with her past the mess.

- --

(Confounded sprinkler!) Kuno thought as she stormed angrily towards the school grounds, carrying her little sister under one arm. (Damned pathetic curse!) She entered the grounds, noticing with much annoyance that she was already late. (Damn it all.)

She wasn't exactly in the best of moods.

Kuno looked around, wondering where she might be able to find some hot water. She began heading in the direction of the boys' shower room.

Then she stopped. She wouldn't be able to get in there, especially not if there were guys inside already. She paused for a moment. Then, with an annoyed sigh, she turned and headed for the girls' side.

The small furry animal in her arms began to make an interesting chittering noise when it realized where they were headed. Kuno frowned.

"Oh, shut up!" she growled, tightening her grip on the rabbit and causing it to choke, "I don't find this the least bit funny, so I don't want to hear anything out of you."

The girl took one final look around her, just to make sure that they were alone. Then she walked quietly into the shower room. Finding an empty stall, she set the rabbit down by her feet, unchanging so that she wouldn't get her clothes any more wet than they already were. She then turned on the shower, making sure it was as hot as it would go.

After Tatewaki had gotten rid of a certain side of himself he would much rather live without, he reluctantly walked out of the hot shower and rechanged, leaving the water running for his sister, who (no pun intended) hopped in and out at a much less leisurely rate. She dressed herself just as quickly, if not faster.

"We're already very late, brother dear," she scorned, "Do you wish to get us into more trouble than we're in already?"

Her brother merely shrugged at her remark. "Late is late. We should suffer no consequences worse than what we already will." He finished dressing, then picked up his bag and began walking out alongside his sister as she exited the showering area of the locker room. "I see no need to worry."

"Ah, but Tacchi dear, you've forgotten where we are."

"Eh?" Kuno missed his sister's hesitation at the exit to the shower stalls and turned the corner without pausing. A point he soon regretted.

The next few moments were filled with female cries of shock as he found himself being pounded into the floor by the girl's softball team.

"PERVERT! HOW DARE YOU!"

"Trying to catch up on what you've been missing, Kuno?"

"No! Wait! AUGH Please! I beg you to OOF reconsider your actions ACK on this most ERG inappropriate intrusion into- GAAAHHH!"

"Oh, dear." Kodachi watched as her older brother went sailing out the window towards the school grounds. "He's going to need another shower after this. Thank goodness he's a guy this time! Ohohohohohohoho!" The high school gymnast bounded after her brother as her laugh caused several of the girls to hold their heads in pain.

The members of the girl's softball team looked around confusedly at the sudden appearance of an extraordinary amount of black rose petals.

- --

Akane and Ranma looked up from their desks simultaneously as a girl with a slightly off centered ponytail came strolling into the classroom. The teacher looked up from the roll sheet he was busy marking off. His eyes narrowed a bit and he stood up. "This would be our other new student, class." The girl paused and regarded him with a haughty, yet somewhat embarrased, expression. "You're late Miss Kuno. Once you've set your things down I'm going to have to ask you to stand in the hall."

"Is that really necessary, sir?" She asked with a bit of an edge in her voice. The teacher didn't argue with her, but produced two buckets of water, which he held out to her with a glare. She sighed and took them before marching back out to the hallway.

A quiet mumuring filled the classroom. Akane blinked in surprise and turned to Ranma. "Did he say Kuno?" she asked. Ranma shrugged.

"Something like that. Why? You know her?"

"I know _a_ Kuno..." she muttered with a frown. They've GOT to be related, now that I think about it. They look too much alike not to be."

- --

Just down the hallway, Tatewaki was also entering his classroom behind schedule. His teacher also glared at him as he walked in, but when Kuno apologized for his lateness he was too stunned to send him out to the hallway.

Nabiki watched him with increasing interest. The boy had obviously run into some trouble before class, as he was sporting a recently given black eye and his clothes were a mess. She figured Akane must have gotten him pretty bad that morning.

Still... there was something else not quite right about him that she couldn't put her finger on. True, she hadn't seen him in months - not since his mother had suddenly shown up out of nowhere after seemingly abandoning her children through most of their childhood and whisked them off on some training trip to China. For the most part he looked the same, though it seemed he was growing his hair out a bit. He had it tied in a high, samurai-esque ponytail. No doubt another phase he was going through.

As she watched she began to realize she wasn't the only one staring. Several other of their classmates were giving him quick glances and murmuring to themselves. A couple of the boys her sister had beaten up that morning looked like they were trying to get his attention. One finally managed to get him to look his way by snapping his fingers in Kuno's face. When the kendo enthusiast turned with a disinterested gaze the other boy stuck a note out for him to take. Kuno looked a bit surprised and opened the note to read it. He frowned slightly and scribbled something at the bottom before handing it back. Nabiki made a mental note to ask him about it after class.

He looked dejected, she realized. That was what it was. He looked positively downtrodden and it was a look she had never seen on him. There had to be some way she could profit from this change in attitude... Perhaps the right photographs could cheer him up.

When the end of class bell rang, she was at his side so quickly he jumped back for a second, startled. "Nabiki Tendo... How can I help you?" He asked warily.

"Help _me_?" she asked innocently. "Kuno baby, I'm here to help _you_. The sad and angsty vibe doesn't become you."

Kuno swallowed. "I'm... afraid I don't know what you mean..."

Nabiki sighed dramatically. "Honestly, the things I do for you, hun." She pulled out an envelope and handed it to him. "Latest batch," she said smoothly. "Set of 5 for 3000 yen."

He opened the envelope and pulled out the photographs. They were of Akane, of course. The regular stock. Nabiki saw the usual perverted gleam rise in the kendoists eyes and his hands shook a bit. Then, to her astonishment and horror, he squeezed his eyes shut as though he was in pain and quickly handed the envelope back to her. "I can't take these," he said shakily.

"I don't do this for just anyone," she said carefully. "2000 yen, then, and you'll never find a better deal."

"No!" He said hurriedly. "I... I can't buy pictures of Akane from you."

"Whyever not, Kuno baby?" she asked with a genuinely concerned expression, if not for the right reasons.

"Because I... I..." it looked, to her surprise, that tears were about to well up in his eyes. Then he straightened up and his face hardened. "I don't have to explain myself to you, Nabiki Tendo. Thank you for your _generous_ offer, but I am not interested!" He then stormed out of the room as quickly as he could. Nabiki watched after him, utterly stunned.

(The nerve of him!) she thought angrily. She'd have to find out what was wrong with him and soon, or she was bound to lose her largest source of income.

- --

Lunch found both Kuno siblings sitting under a tree in the courtyard. Neither one was talking to the other, but neither were interested in keeping the company of anyone else at the moment either. Tatewaki had been annoyed at first when his mother had demanded that his sister attend Furinkan with him so that they could assist each other when issues involving their curses arose, but now he was rather glad for it. He wasn't exactly sure how Kodachi felt, but he was sure she would adjust.

"I didn't see you in the hallway this morning, Tacchi," she asked suddenly. "Did you manage to bribe a teacher to get out of it?"

"Eh?" the elder Kuno blinked. "Oh... no. I guess he must have forgotten. And what have I told you about using that name at school?"

Kodachi smirked. "Come now, Tacchi dear. There's no one sitting close enough to hear us."

"That's besides the point!"

Not too far away, Ranma, Nabiki, and Akane sat watching the two of them. Nabiki was squinting, desperately trying to make out what they were saying. Ranma looked bored.

"So he has a sister," he muttered. "What's the big deal?"

"If she's anything like his brother then it's a very big deal!" Akane growled. "That JERK is the reason I have to beat off hordes of guys every morning!"

Ranma sweatdropped. "Uh... what? Oh! YOU did that this morning?" He scratched his head. "Why would guys want to attack you like that?"

Nabiki responded before Akane could. "He told them that no one would be allowed to date Akane unless they could defeat her. I suppose Mr. Ego believed he was the only one who could. Even after he went on his recent trip to China they kept it up. I suppose they all hoped to be able to beat her while he was gone for bragging rights when he returned."

"No such luck," Akane scowled.

"Not really surprising, seeing as Kuno was the best martial artist in the school and still couldn't make himself go all out on her," Nabiki added.

Ranma seemed to perk up at this. "He's the best in the school?"

Nabiki nodded, mind working quickly. From the gleam in Ranma's eyes she could nearly smell a lucrative opportunity.

"I've been needing to work off some steam," the boy grinned. "I wonder if he'd be up for a bit of one on one sparring."

He stood up before either girl could add anything and made his way over to where the two Kunos were getting up to leave. Kodachi saw him approaching and tapped her brother on the shoulder to get his attention. Tatewaki straightened up immediately and threw a superior glare at the newcomer.

"Yo!" Ranma called, by way of greeting. "Kuno, isn't it?"

"Upperclassman Tatewaki Kuno," the other boy responded. "And I do not believe we have met."

"Ranma Saotome," Ranma answered with a bow. "I hear you're a martial artist."

Kuno's eyes narrowed. "If you would like to put it that way, yes."

"All right then. I, Ranma Saotome of the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts, challenge you to a formal duel."

Kodachi looked surprised. "On what grounds?"

"Nothin' more than friendly competition," Ranma answered with a wink. "Unless Kuno isn't feeling up to the challenge."

The Kendoist in question bristled. "I back down from no man!" He said with a huff. "Name your time and place, Cur!"

"How about right now, and you can pick the place yourself."

"Done! And I have no qualms about fighting in this very yard."

Ranma nodded, backing up a bit and dropping into a fighting stance. Kuno drew out a bokken from where he'd had it strapped to his side and fell into a position of his own. Kodachi moved make several paces, and as other students noticed the goings on they followed suit.

"Kendoist, eh?" Ranma asked as the two of them sized each other up. "I hope you don't mind if I just use my bare fists."

"Only if you don't mind bruising them," came Kuno's reply before launching into a flurry of blows that Ranma quickly began to dodge.

Kodachi soon found herself standing next to the two girls that had been accompanying her brother's challenger. She eyed them suspiciously, fearing they may try something to help out their friend. After all, it wasn't like it was anything she wasn't prone to do herself. Instead, however, the two girls seemed more interested in her than the fight.

"So..." Akane began cautiously. "You're Kuno's sister, huh?"

"I am."

"Strange that we've never met you before," Nabiki asked innocently.

"I don't see how that's any of your concern."

The older Tendo waved her off with a grin. "Now, now. No need to be suspiscious. We're just interested in meeting the new student is all." And wondering what on EARTH you two did on that training trip of yours, Nabiki finished mentally. That was a question for another time.

A cry of pain brought their attention back to the match. Ranma had just fallen back with a hand on his side. Kuno gave a satisfied smirk and prepared to charge again. The pig-tailed martial artist looked ready to kill. "I LIKE this shirt!" He said furiously, hiding the fact that Kuno had actually hurt him a bit. "You'll pay for that!" The fight resumed.

Nabiki looked at her watch. "Oh, would you look at the time," she said simply. "Lunch is about over. HEY KUNO!" she shouted suddenly. "DON'T HURT MY FIANCE TOO MUCH, OKAY? WE STILL HAVE A COUPLE CLASSES TODAY!"

"Your WHAT?" Kuno cried, shocked and temporarily forgetting the match. Ranma took advantage of the distraction and knocked him out cold with a well placed foot to the skull.

"Oh come ON, Nabiki." Ranma seemed partially annoyed. "That doesn't really count as a fair match now."

"_You_ took advantage of his lack of attention, not I," she cooed.

Ranma shrugged and the two of them began heading back inside. Kodachi just sighed and shook her head. She thought about getting upset with them, but it genuinely _had _been her brother's fault he lost the match. Walking over to his slowly reviving figure she gave him a small kick in the ribs. "Coming to class or not, Tacchi?"

Tatewaki moaned and sat up, rubbing his head. He looked around for a moment before realizing what happened. "That cheating fiend!" he scowled. "He is no man, I say!"

"So challenge him to a rematch! Just not right now. I don't want to be late again." With that, she turned and made her way back into the school. After a bit more grumbling, Kuno followed.

**End of chapter two.**


End file.
